Sunny Day
by Celery
Summary: *warning: slash* Heero and Duo are roommates at the same college after the war, and are apprehensive to confess their love for one another. Relena is relentlessly attempting to 'capture' Heero, while Wufei realizes that he has a thing for Duo.
1. The Bet

Sunny Day

Note- ::blah:: indicates thought

2nd Note- Edited for your personal reading pleasure.

Disclaimer: Never mine, never will be, not making money, so don't sue.

    Duo yawned and stretched, basking in the golden rays of light filtering through the translucent curtains on the large windows in his room. He looked around, and noticed that his room mate, who slept in the other bed, was not occupying the sleeping space... In fact, it barely seemed disturbed, as if only the tiniest amount of weight had disturbed it. He sighed dramatically, hoping to catch the attention of the other boy in the room, who, as always, was clacking away at his laptop.

    "Ah! Beautiful day today, hey Heero? Duo said, bouncing across the room after throwing on some black jeans and a t-shirt to peer out the window. The tip of his long braid whacked his silent companion as he typed. Duo kept going, only to feel a sharp tug through his braid, and suddenly he was sitting on the floor.

    "You know, this braid is rather annoying sometimes," Heero said, not looking at the figure looking quite stumped sitting on the floor, holding the braid in one hand and typing with the other. "But it's part of you, so I don't feel entitled to cut it off while you are sleeping quite yet."

    "Hmp," replied a sulky Duo, knowing that Heero was just fooling around. He had been close to the other former Gundam pilot even before the war was over, and he hoped even more so now.

    ::You pervert. Just because you can't admit to yourself that you are completely and utterly in love with Heero doesn't mean that he returns the feeling, or even knows about it.:: Duo grumbled to himself.

    "So Duo, how has it been going in your classes?" Heero inquired, actually showing some interest in his companion, now that he was at his mercy.

"Not bad, not bad.. You?" Duo replied cheerfully, while squirming in a vain attempt to escape from Heero's grasp.

    "Stop struggling, you'll only hurt yourself," Heero warned. "And I am doing just fine. These classes are rather easy compared to war strategies and stuff."

He addressed to Duo, who was sitting on the floor. 

    ::Why is he so casual? So not like himself? He's acting weird...:: Duo leaned against the wall near him in the small dorm Heero and he shared together, by request for the sake of familiarity in the new unfamiliar world they had been introduced to. He closed his eyes, knowing that Heero wasn't going to let go until he was good and ready.

    Suddenly, he heard Heero move, and felt him let go of his braid. He cracked open one eye, and then both eyes went wide with surprise. Because what he saw was two large cobalt blue eyes gazing intensely into his.

    ::This can't be happening.. Heero is not three inches away from my face, studying me like a prize... I don't believe it.. what?:: Duo felt Heero's hand slide around his waist, and felt himself lifted to his feet. 

    "No need to sit when you can be getting ready for the weekend," Heero said softly, his arm still lingering around Duo's waist, before slowly slipping it away.

    ::Oh god, oh god, oh god...:: Duo thought frantically. ::Don't show, don't show, don't show.::

    "Yup," said Duo through gritted teeth, attempting to keep his raging hormones under control. And achieved it… by the barest second.

    "Duo, is there something you are not telling me?" Heero said, smiling sweetly.

    "No, Heero, I tell you everything, remember? Part of our deal?" Duo said flatly, and winced internally at his tone of voice.

    "Hn," Heero said, looking disappointed. Well, at least to Duo, who could tell almost 100% of the time what the lone wolf had on his mind. To a normal person, Heero's face barely even twitched.

    ::Disappointed? Why in the world would Heero be disappointed?:: Duo thought, gazing at his companion intensely.

    Heero made a small noise (which would of been inaudible to anyone but Duo) and gazed into Duo's eyes, moving closer. Duo caught his breath, wondering what was going on. "Duo, there is something I..."

    Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door.

    "Yes?" Heero called, sounding aggravated.

    "Heero Yuy, sir, Miss Relena is here to see you... again," came the polite response from the other side of the door.

    Heero growled softly, moving away from Duo, and whispered to him "I'll tell you later... Come in!" he added louder, so that the attendant could here him, and slunk over to the door, awaiting the woman outside.

    "Heero-kun!" Relena's high-pitched voice was accompanied by the sound of a dress rustling, and heels clicking on the floor as she swayed into the room.

    ::Dressed up for the prospective future king, as usual.:: Duo thought wryly to himself.

    "Why Relena, what a... nice surprise," Heero hesitated, as if not sure of how to word it. Duo giggled silently.

    "Heero, it's been 3 whole days since I've seen you!" Relena gushed. "Actually, it was only 46 hours, 23 minutes and 9.2seconds, but that's irrelevant."

    "Stalker!" Duo stage whispered.

    Relena glared at him, and turned to the attendant. "You may depart as of now," she instructed him coldly, "I am perfectly safe here with my Heero-kun!" She finished passionately, turning to the one she named. And sagged with disappointment.

    Her Heero, HER precious Heero, was sitting at his laptop, talking to that... that... that longhaired, loud-mouthed FREAK who called himself Heero's roommate.

    ::Who cares if they shared life-or-death missions, secrets, and jobs with each other! That does not give Duo rights over MY Heero, especially since I am his one true love, AND a queen. Not just some low-class, loudmouthed, orphaned scum fished out of the gutters to be a SLAVE to some mad scientists!:: She sniffed loudly, hoping would Heero would talk to HER, instead of conferring inaudibly with Duo.

    Duo suddenly giggled, and glanced at Relena, making eye contact boldly, and smirking, before returning to his conversation with her Heero. 

    ::Whoa! What was that all about? That cheeky little...:: Relena thought instantly, then her second thought came to mind. ::That gaze... those beautiful.., violet-blue eyes... so intense... they were so full of life, laughter, and mischief... How can that be? How can someone with so little be so happy...:: her thoughts trailed off as her love pushed his chair back, stood, tweaked Duo's braid, and walked in her direction.

    "Mission. Accepted." Heero said softly to Duo, trying to hide the humor in his eyes and voice. "But you owe me for this one." He walked towards Relena, who smiled sweetly and awaited him. "Relena, my dear, will you accompany me to the cafe? Duo would like to take his shower in private," he said to the blond-haired queen smiling at him.

    "Of course Heero. I would absolutely love to go to the cafe with you!" Relena gushed happily, dragging Heero out of the dorm room and down the stairs.

****

    Meanwhile, while Relena blabbered on and on, Duo prepared for his shower.

Ditching his black t-shirt and black pants, he walked over to the mirror wearing only his smiley face boxers. He then took out the elastic holding his long hair in a braid, and shook out his hair so that it cascaded freely about his body, coming to a stop in the mid-calf area.

    "Hm.. I need a trim..." said Duo sadly as he inspected his dead and tripled split-ends, leaning towards the mirror, to further investigate the state of his hair. 

    Suddenly, Duo heard a loud thud outside his window, which was on the third floor next to a tree. He peered out the window and saw, to his deepest surprise, Wufei lying on the ground with a pair of binoculars.

    "Wu-man? What in the hell are you doing down there? Do you even attend this school? And why do you have binoculars? Don't tell me you were tryin' to spy on the girls down there, you pervert!" Duo rambled. "Besides.. the girls dorms start a wing over!" he yelled down helpfully.

    "Blah blah blah" Wufei's incomprehensible reply floated up to him.

    "Huh? Can you repeat that!?" Duo practically screamed out the window, attracting glances from passing couples in the garden, with several of the girls checking out Duo's lithe, scantily clad body. The young men glared at Duo, and gently led the goggling girls out of sight of Duo.

    "I'M NOT SPYING ON THE GIRLS YOU BAKA ONNA!!!" Wufei's voice blared up at him.

    "OH! OKAY! WHY DON'T YOU COME UP HERE AND JOIN ME THEN!!" Duo yelled back, after a few moments of pondering that.

    "No need to yell, O' Loud and Braided One," Wuefi said calmly. Duo jumped, and his eyes bugged out of his head seeing Wufei's face about a foot away from his outside the window, with the warrior seeming to float outside the window.

    "Dude, you fly?" Duo asked, bewildered by this turn of events.

    "No, Duo, I do not fly. I climb," Wufei said, pointing to the tree branch he was balancing on.

    "Oh. Okay. I see," Duo said, obviously disbelieving Wufei.

    "Yeah."

    "..."

    "..."

    Duo blinked, and shook his head, as if remembering something, "Well, come in, come in.." he stepped away from the window.

    "Thank you, Duo. I graciously accept your offer," Wufei said, and with cat-like grace, jumped into Duo's room.

    ::Mmm... Duo is SO delicious looking in his boxers. How I envy Heero... Damn that Perfect Soldier. I am always second to him. Second to Treize's respect, second to his deeds...:: Wufei sulked in the back of his head, eying Duo's lithe body appreciatively.

    ::Oh gods. Is Wufei... checking me out?!:: Duo thought, watching Wufei's eyes sweeping his body. Suddenly, he added two and two together. ::Binoculars, outside my room, just when I was going to take a shower.... Oh my god.. Wufei is GAY:: Duo almost burst into hysterical laughter at this notion. 

    ::I wonder what he's thinking...::

    ::Yeah.. right.. Wu-man can't be gay.. can he?:: Duo searched through all his memories of his former comrade, and pieced the evidence together silently in his mind.

    Meanwhile, Wufei coughed loudly. Duo glanced up distractedly, and onyx eyes looked straight into his. Duo's heart almost stopped right there. There, in Wufei's eyes, he saw the last piece of the puzzle. 

    ::Breath Duo, breath... you just hit something...:: Duo breathed in, trying to come to terms with what he had just discovered. ::Just because everything you knew about Wufei has been completely destroyed... He's GAY.. Oh. My. God. GAY! And in love with ME!:: Duo's breathing became more rapid.

    "Duo, is something the matter?" Wufei's voice interrupted the American's thoughts.

    "No... no.. nothing..." Duo said distractedly, playing with the ends of his hair nervously.

    Wufei glanced at him oddly, "Okay, if you say so..." 

    "Yes, I say so," Duo snapped uncharacteristically, glancing sharply at the Chinese man across from him.

    ::Shit:: Wufei thought frantically. ::Do you think he suspects... he couldn't... could he? I'm not that obvious... am I?:: He tried to keep his eyes from straying from the violet eyes glaring into his to the lithe, tanned body that was clad merely in boxers.

    ::Wufei IS checking me out:: Duo gasped internally as he watched Wufei's eyes skim his body erratically. ::Wow. I must be cuter than I thought if I can turn Wufei on:: he giggled aloud, drawing a sharp glance from his onyxed-eyed companion.

    ::Must not think bad thoughts, must not think bad thoughts...:: Wufei was grateful he had worn baggier pants than usual, so he could hide his growing manhood. ::Damn Americans. Always have to be more beautiful then the rest of us don't they.::

    The two young men eyed each other warily, and Wufei instinctively leaned in, his face getting closer and closer to the violet eyes, the silky brown hair, and those plush lips...

     "And then Zechs said 'Relena, I cannot believe you! Running out like that' I felt quite naughty..." Relena's high pitched chatter was heard approaching down the hallway, through the closed door, and the two men sprang apart, Wufei scrambling into a nearby chair, and Duo bouncing onto his bed, and tried to appear to be relaxed.

    ::Oh Deathsythe, was Wufei about to KISS me??? ACK! And I was going to let him!:: Duo scrunched his nose. ::Ewww. I feel dirty.::

    The door swung open, and Relena pranced into the room, still chattering to a stone-faced Heero. She paused at the sight of Wufei lounging in a chair and Duo sprawled on the bed, his long hair fanned out and his slim body only clothed in boxers. Her eyes widened appreciatively at Duo's fit body before mentally slapping herself and reminding herself to be faithful to Heero. Heero's cobalt eyes widened as well, but having no such mental blocks as Relena did, openly scanned Duo's muscled body, and tried not to lick his lips.

    Wufei grunted a hello to the newcomers, and Duo bounded off the bed, past Relena to plant a kiss on a surprised Heero's cheek, and scurrying into the bathroom. The door shut, and the lock click was heard through the uncomfortable silence left in Duo's wake.

    "So...Wufei..." Relena said. "How have you been doing?"

    ::What the hell was that all about?:: Wufei growled mentally. ::Duo and Heero...no way. Relena and Heero are SO together... aren't they?:: He ignored Relena's attempts to get his attention. The blonde huffed, and dragged Heero out of the room, muttering about rude Chinese warriors. Heero dragged his feet, wishing he could join Duo in the shower he could hear running, and mentally protesting the bet he'd made with Duo.


	2. Recollections and Suspicions

Sunny Day

Chapter 2- Recollections and Suspicions

Note: Heero's point of view. Next chapter will be same time frame, Duo's view. 

    Heero stumbled into the room he and Duo shared, exhausted from Relena's extensive shopping extravaganza, which left Heero exhausted and dead on his feet. Being forced to carry two tons of feminine objects in shopping bags around a shopping complex by an enthusiastic queen was not top on his list of priorities, especially when he could be at school enjoying the company of a certain violet-eyed, braided roommate and former comrade-at-arms. But a bet was a bet, and Heero had yet to lose one to Duo. Heero's fond thoughts of Duo suddenly turned competitive.

    ::That baka braided child:: Heero growled internally. ::I can't believe I agreed to this. It's insane! Does he take me for one of his orphan playmates from his childhood, always wagering something or other.:: Then he remembered the humor of the situation, and smiled slightly, his thoughts of Duo once again turning to the tendrils of tentative love he was experiencing for the American, who was quickly worming his way into the heart of the Japanese teen. Heero, raised for destruction and ending the lives of others, had been unsure of the feeling that made his heart flutter when he looked into violet eyes, made his hands shake when he heard the cheerful voice, and his stomach erupt into a flock of butterflies when he came face to face with the young man. He'd dismissed it as worthless, and a pain in the ass. But as the war drew to a close, Relena's signature paving the way for peace, he found himself alone again, and dreaming not of blond hair and shining blue eyes, but of long brown hair framing shimmering purple orbs peering out from a smooth smiling face. 

   As Heero's thoughts drifted, he remembered all the times Duo had come back for him, when Duo was the one that was by his side when he awoke crying, the silent tears falling on twisted sheets. When he'd held the gun to his head after one mission, Duo was the one coaxing him back to sanity. Duo was the one who'd carried him to the hospital, bandaged and semi-conscious, when he'd gotten the courage to hold the razor to battle-scarred wrists, and Duo had returned from classes finding his roommate laying in a spreading puddle of blood, and no money for a taxi. Duo was the one who paid for his medical bills with money Heero didn't know he had, and nursed the ailing soldier back to heath every time thereafter. He remembered a humming Duo bustling around the room, helping Heero with his homework while doing his own, cleaning up after Heero's infamous tantrums, patiently putting up with Heero's monologues about being a failed human being and still managing to keep his social and personal life together. He'd surprised the Perfect Soldier, because Heero had discovered behind the carefree mask, there lay a serious genius, who could just as easily rattle off answers to complicated equations as come up with pranks to pull on others in the co-ed dorm. 

   Continuing along his path of thoughts, Heero also recalled the tender ministrations of the American, the gentle caresses that awoke him, the cuddling warmth that comforted him at night, the indulgent glances cast in his direction. As a true friend, Duo has stuck by his side, and inadvertently  caused his roommate to fall in love with him.

   ::Calm yourself, Heero:: the teen scolded himself. :: You know how close you came this morning, and you heard his tone of voice when you touched him like that…:: He let his deep blue eyes scan the room, looking at the signs of Duo- a comb lying on the dresser next to scattered, multi-colored elastics; a pair of form-fitting black jeans dumped on the floor; a dried towel hanging off a bed post; a black backpack embroidered with a mini-Deathsythe with it's contents scattered across Duo's desk and neatly made bed, and other various Duo objects. As Heero smiled sadly, thinking sweet thoughts of being with his beloved, he caught sight of a note on his laptop. Heaving himself off his now rumpled bed, he went to the computer and picked up the scrap of paper. Examining it, he saw that it was a note for him written in Duo's precise handwriting.

Heero- 

_Wufei and I went out with some of my friends. If you need me, I have my receiver with me, as does Wufei. I left a dinner for you in the oven if you get hungry. Set the oven to 350__°F and wait for it to heat up. When the beep sounds, set the timer for ten minutes. Yes, I know, it sounds strange, but the headmaster allowed me to install an American stove while you were out. Speaking of which, how goes the bet? Who's going to win? Hmm? That's what I thought!_

_Will be back by midnight_

_Duo_

    Heero smiled at the cheeky note from his friend, and ate his dinner according to the instructions on the note. Grabbing the newspaper from the counter, he sat at the table and shoveled food into his mouth and read the news, when suddenly, the phone rang.

   "Hello?" he inquired into the phone.

   "Heero-kun!" came the singsong response through the line.

    Heero sighed, "Hello, Relena," he said with resignation. 

    "I know that I promised that I would call tomorrow, but I just couldn't stand being without talking to you for that long! The three days without you were just pure torture, darling!" Relena's voice trilled across the line.

    Heero caught himself from making a sarcastic remark "It's okay, Relena, I don't mind at all." 

   "Oh, that's good! Besides, I just wanted to ask if I could meet you at the Neon Blu tomorrow at 10," Relena replied.

   Caught off guard, as he'd been expecting another gushing, loving remark, he stammered out a response, "Uh- okay, if you want to," he murmured.

   "Okay!" Relena said brightly, and there was a click as she hung up the phone.

   Heero stared at the phone in his hand in disbelief. ::These days just keep getting stranger and stranger….:: he thought to himself.

****

    The next day, Heero was up at 8, but was disappointed to find the room cleaned up and Duo gone. Remembering that Duo had a 7:30 war class to teach- as a former soldier he was the only student teaching at the school- Heero showered and ate the breakfast left for him by his ever-attentive companion. He settled at his laptop, and started clicking away, and an hour and a half later rose again, his long-term homework for the next two weeks completed, and his monthly report to the Peace Center was complete. He strolled out of the room, locking the door behind him, and strode down the hallway, his normal clothing of a tank top and shorts replaced by a long sleeved form-fitting shirt and clinging jeans, earning him admiring looks from other students making their way down the hallways. He slid into the car he and Duo co-owned together, and made his way off campus to the café about fifteen minutes away. As he arrived, he saw Relena's new car, a non-descript little blue thing of a car, with a normal plate. The only thing that showed that it was Relena's car was the teddy bears given to her as gifts amassed in the back, in full-display at the back window. The one he had given her, four years ago during the war, was in the middle of the stuffed bears, it's glossy black eyes smiling lovingly at passing motorists and pedestrians. He regretted giving her the gift, one of the many things he'd done out of what his hormone-affected mind had thought was love, and he realized now was just a transfer of the affection he'd denied Duo. His thoughts drifted back to the war as he strode into the Blu Neon, his eyes automatically securing the premises and checking for enemies before he allowed himself to fully enter the café. Spotting the blond queen waiting for him in a corner in the back, he made his way over to her, avoiding a waitress heading for the opposite end of the room. He slid into the seat across from her, and she paid him no mind, her big blue eyes staring out the window at the artificial clouds drifting across a fake sky.

   "Hello, Relena," he greeted her quietly, and waited for her response.

   She sat quietly for a moment, before fixing her large orbs on him, and responded, "Hello, Heero. I'm sure you are wondering what you are doing here." Her voice was as quiet as his, without any of the normal perkiness, screech, or chatter that it usually held. 

    Heero remained emotionless as he replied, "Yes, I'd like to know why I am not home doing my homework, and what is it that you had to meet me here," he paused as gestured to the rest of the café with his eyes, "That you'd rather not tell me at my school or in your home." 

    "I wanted to meet you in a neutral place," she said.

    Heero's eyebrow arched minutely, "Neutral? What is it that can be so important that it needs to be neutral?" 

    "I know," she blurted. "I know about you and Duo," she amended hastily. 

    Heero's eyebrow raised another half of a micrometer, "What about us?"

    "About your relationship."  
    "What relationship? We are roommates, former allies in the war, now schoolmates and good friends. That is our relationship, if that is what you are speaking of," Heero said, his cobalt eyes flashing. ::I wish it were more:: he said to himself internally. 

    Relena's eyes narrowed, "Don't lie to me, Heero-kun," she said, putting an extra emphasis on the affectionate term she granted him. "I see those looks you give him, the way you caress his skin, the way you always let your guard down when you are utterly absorbed in him and what he is saying. The way you treat a lover, a love, a soul mate. Why have you never treated me this way, Heero? Why is it that you only tolerate me as if you have to, as if you are forced to put up with me? Am I really such a burden to you, Heero? Do I get in the way of time better spent with your beloved? Is that it?" Relena's voice never rose, but it got more and more accusing as the questions were fired at the man sitting across from him.

    ::YES!:: Heero cried internally, but he knew that to anger Relena was to have another path to his past cut off to him, another good friend lost to him. He also remembered the bet.

    He placed his hand over Relena's smooth, pale one, and looked into her eyes, "That's not it at all. Duo and I are the best of friends. He almost shot me, he found my Gundam, he allied himself with me, he reached out and touched my ice heart and thawed it, allowing me to let in others, and more importantly, you," he said, putting all sincerity as possible into his face, eyes, and voice. ::Just another lie to add to your endless list:: he sighed to himself.  

    ****

    Heero flopped on his full bed next to Duo's matching one. His bed was dressed in a hunter green comforter, with dark blue sheets and feather pillows complimenting it. He gazed thoughtfully at Duo's neatly made bed, it's black comforter and sheets looking practically ironed from the neatness. Suddenly, the phone rang, and Heero stirred, his equivalent of jumping in surprise, and mentally cursed himself for letting himself being surprised by the mere ringing of a phone.

   He answered it, "Hello?"

   "Yes, is Duo Maxwell there?" a polite voice asked at the other end.

   "No, why?" Heero asked.

   "We were wondering why he didn't show up for his 7:30 class this morning without informing us that he was sick," the voice informed him.

   Heero's eyes widened, "He didn't?"

   "Who is this?" the voice demanded.

   "This is Heero Yuy, Max- I mean, Duo's roommate," Heero said quietly.

   "Do you know where your roommate might be?" the voice inquired.

   "He went out with friends last night, and I assumed he came home and left while he was sleeping. I guess I was wrong. I'll just contact his friends," he replied.

   "Okay, thank you. Have a nice day, Mr. Yuy," the voice said mechanically, and hung up.

   Heero stared at the phone in his hands, and wondered where Duo could be. He remembered the note, and dialed the number for Duo's receiver. He drummed his hands impatiently on the table while he waited. Suddenly, he heard "_The number you have just called has been disconnected. Please try again later, and the service might be restored."_ The mechanical voice on the other end sounded pleasant and unworried, the exact opposite of Heero's thoughts of his beloved. Quickly, he dialed Wufei's, and there was no answer. Growling to himself, he flipped open his laptop, and began typing furiously, his fingers flying across the clacking keys.


End file.
